This blog is to propagate genuine Catholic devotions in the spirit of Traditional Carmel by providing texts useful for spiritual readings and meditations. "The devil knows that he has lost the soul that perseveringly practices mental prayer" - St Teresa of Avila. "For we preach not ourselves, but Jesus Christ our Lord; and ourselves your servants through Jesus" (2Cor 4:5). Soli Deo honor et gloria.
The blog is lovingly dedicated to the Infant Jesus of Prague and under His Patronage

Saturday, December 16, 2017

Thursday, December 14, 2017

John accepted all this without complaint. In July of that year, he had written to Mother Mary of the Incarnation, Prioress of the Segovia convent, who was distressed at the treatment he was receiving: '....do not let what is happening to me, my daughter, cause you any grief, for it does not cause me any....Men do not do these things, but God, who knows what is suitable for us and arranges things for our good. Think nothing else but that God ordains all, and where there is no love, put love, and you will draw out love...' Even more now, when he was being treated with such little love, he responded only with love and forgiveness. 'At the evening of life' , said John of the Cross, 'we will be judged by love.' John was approaching the evening of his life. Love was his response to everything. He refused to say an ill word of those who hated him. He received letters telling him of Fr Diego's campaign against him, which were kept in a bag at the bottom of his bed. He ordered them to be burnt, so that they would not damage the Order after his death. He had no word of complaint of his treatment, seeing everything as a permitted by God for his good. Perhaps alluding to the nun's concerns about Doria's governance, but surely applicable to his own situation, he wrote to Mother Anne of St Albert, 'you already know, daughter, the trials they are now suffering. God permits it to try his elect. In silence and in hope shall our strength be.''Have a great love for those who contradict and fail to love you,' he wrote to another nun, 'for in this way love is begotten in a heart that has no love. God so acts with us, for He loves us that we might love by means of the very love He bears toward us.' It worked, because at John's deathbed, the Prior knelt in tears and asked his forgiveness.

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

O IMMACULATE Virgin! Mary, conceived without sin!
Remember, thou wert miraculously preserved from
even the shadow of sin, because thou wert destined
to become not only the Mother of God, but also
the mother, the refuge, and the advocate of man;
penetrated, therefore, with the most lively confidence
in thy never-failing intercession, we most humbly implore
thee to look with favor upon the intentions of this novena,
and to obtain for us the graces and favors we request.
(Here form your petitions.)
Thou knowest, O Mary, how often our hearts are the
sanctuaries of God, Who abhors iniquity. Obtain for us,
then, that Angelic purity which was thy favorite virtue,
that purity of heart which will attach us to God alone, and
that purity of intention which will consecrate every thought,
word, and action to His greater glory. Obtain also for us a
constant spirit of prayer and self-denial, that we may recover
by penance that innocence which we have lost by sin,
and at length attain safely to that blessed abode of the
Saints, where nothing defiled can enter.

Thursday, November 09, 2017

I will make my home with them and walk among them; I will be their God and they shall be my people (2Cor 6:16) I will set up my dwelling among them (Lev 26:11)

'O Saints of Carmel, throned above

In Mary's court, obtain this grace

That where you are in glory now

We, too, may find a resting-place'

All of us who wear this holy Carmelite habit are called to prayer and contemplation. This is what we were founded for. We are descendant from those holy fathers of ours on Mount Carmel, those who went in search of that treasure – the priceless pearl we are talking about – in such solitude and with such contempt for the world.
We must remember those holy fathers of ours who have gone before us, the hermits whose lives we are trying to imitate. We must remember our real founders. These holy fathers whose descendants we are. It was by way of poverty and humility, we know, that they came to enjoyment of God.
On the subject if the beginning of Orders, I sometimes hear it said that the Lord gave greater graces to those saints who went before us because they were the foundations. Quite so, but we too must always bear in mind what it means to be foundations for those who will come later. For if those of us who are alive now have not fallen away from what they did in the past, and those who come after us do the same, the building will always stand firm. What use is it to me for the saints of the past to have been what they were, if I come along after them and behave so badly that I leave the building in ruins because of my bad habits? For obviously whose who come later don’t remember those who have died years before as clearly as they do the people they see around them. A fine state of affairs it is if I insist that I am not one of the first, and do not realize what a difference there is between my life and virtues, and the life of those God has endowed with such grace!
And you who sees your Order falling away in any respect, must try to be kind of stone the building can be rebuilt with – the Lord will help to rebuilt it.
For love of our Lord I beg them to remember how quickly everything comes to an end, and what a favour our Lord has done us in bringing us to this Order, and what a punishment anyone who starts any kind of relaxation will deserve. They must always look at the race we are descended from – that race of holy prophets. What numbers of saints we have in heaven who have worn this habit of ours! We must have the holy audacity to aspire, with God’s help, to be like them. The struggle will not last long, but the outcome will be eternal. (St Teresa of Avila, readings from Discalced Carmelite proper Offices for the Feast of All Carmelite Saints)

Wednesday, November 08, 2017

Remain in me (Jn 15:4). It is the Word of God who gives this order, expresses this wish. Remain in Me, not for a few moments, a few hours which must pass away, habitually, Remain in Me, pray in Me, adore in Me, love in Me, suffer in Me, work and act in Me. Remain in Me, so that you may be able to encounter anyone or anything; penetrate further still into these depths. This is truly the 'solitude into which God wants to allure the soul that He may speak to it.' as the prophet sang (Hos 2:14).

In order to understand this very mysterious saying, we must not, so to speak, stop at the surface, but enter ever deeper into the divine Being through recollection. 'I pursue my course.' (Ph 3:12) exclaimed St Paul; so must we descend daily this pathway of the Abyss (Ruysbroeck 52-53), which is God; let us slide down this slope (Ru, 52) in wholly loving confidence, "Abyss calls to abyss". It is there in the very depths that the divine impact takes place (Ru 40), where the abyss of our nothingness encounters the Abyss of mercy (Ru 2), the immensity of the all of God (todo of God of John of the Cross face to face with the 'nada' - our nothingness - of man). There we will find the strength to die to ourselves and, losing all vestige of self, we will be changed into love...."Blessed are those who die in the Lord"(Ap 14:13)

(Bl Elizabeth of the Trinity 'Haeven in Faith, First Day, Prayer 2).

"Father, I will that where I am they also whom You have given Me may be with Me, in order that they may behold My glory which You have Me, because You have loved Me before the creation of the world" (John 17:24). Such is Christ's last wish, His supreme prayer before returning to His Father, He wills that where He is we should be also, not only for eternity, but already in time, which is eternity begun and still in progress. It is important then to know where we must live with Him in order to realize His divine dream. "The place where the Son of God is hidden is the bosom of the Father, or the divine Essence, invisible to every mortal eye, unattainable by every human intellect,"(St John of the Cross, St 1:3) as Isaiah said: "Truly You are a hidden God" (Is 45:15). And yet His will is that we should be established in Him, that we should be, so to speak, His own shadow (Ru 81).

By baptism , says St Paul, we have been united to Jesus Christ (Rom 6:4-5). And again: "God seated us together in Heaven in Christ Jesus, that He might show in the ages to come the riches of His grace" (Eph 2:6-7). And further on: "You are no longer guests or strangers, but you belong to the City of saints and the House of God." (Eph 2:19). The Trinity - this is our dwelling, our "home", the Father's house that we must never leave. The Master said one day: "The slave does not remain with the household forever, but the son remains there forever (John 8:35).

"As long as our will has fancies that are foreign to divine union, whims that are now yes, now no, we are like children; we do not advance with giant steps in love for fire has not yet burnt up all the alloy; the gold is not pure; we are still seeking ourselves; God has not consumed "all our hostility to Him. But when the boiling cauldron has consumed every imperfect love, every imperfect sorrow, every imperfect fear," "then love is perfect and the golden ring of our alliance is larger than Heaven and earth. This is the secret cellar in which love places his elect," this "love leads us by ways and paths known to him alone; and he leads us with no turning back, for we will not retrace our steps." (Spiritual Canticle 439). (Bl Elizabeth Second Day, Prayer 2).

The same saint (St John of the Cross) also says that "God is the center of the soul". So when the soul with all "its" strength will know God perfectly, love and enjoy Him fully, then it will have reached the deepest center that can be attained in Him". Before attaining this, the soul is already "in God who is the center," "but it is not yet in its deepest center, for it can still go further. Since love is what unites us to God, the more intense this love is, the more deeply the soul enters into God and the more it is centered in Him. When it "possesses even one degree of love it is already in its center"; but when this love has attained its perfection, the soul will have penetrated into the deepest center. There willl be transformed to the point of becoming very like God." (St John of the Cross, The living Flame of Love). To this soul living within can be addressed the words of Pere Lacordaire to St Mary Magdalene: No longer ask for the Master among those on earth or in Heaven, for He is your soul and your soul is He." (Second Day, Prayer 1).

Wednesday, November 01, 2017

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."(Eph 3:13, 17-19)

St Paul admonished the Ephesians not to grow weak in their tribulations and to be strong and rooted in charity in order to comprehend with all the Saints what is the breath and height and depth and to know also the supereminent charity of the knowledge of Christ, in order to be filled with all the fullness of God. (St John of the Cross, 'The Collected Works')

'Behold, the Lord invites all since He is truth itself, there is no reason to doubt' (St Teresa of Avila, 'The Way of Perfection' ch 19).

Today is a vigil of All Saints, and All Souls Day is the (40th) Anniversary of my receiving the habit. Ask God to make me a geniune Carmelite nun, for better late than never, (fragment of her letter to Fr Gratian)

Sunday, October 15, 2017

Quote for this wonderful day:Teresa knew well the continued presence and value of suffering (physical illness, opposition to reform, difficulties in prayer), but she grew to be able to embrace suffering, even desire it: "Lord, either to suffer or to die." Toward the end of her life she exclaimed: "Oh, my Lord! How true it is that whoever works for you is paid in troubles! And what a precious price to those who love you if we understand its value."

Thursday, September 14, 2017

"Hail, Cross our only hope"! - this is what the holy church summoned us to exclaim during the time for contemplating the bitter suffering of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The jubilant exclamation of the Easter Alleluia silenced the serious sing of the Cross. But the sign of our salvation greeted us amid the time of Easter joy, since we were recalling the discovery of the One who had passed from sight. At the end of the cycle of ecclesiastical feasts, the cross greet us through the heart of the Saviour. And now, as the church year draws towards an end, it is raised high before us and is to hold us spell bound until Easter Alleluia summons us anew to forget the earth for a while and rejoice in the marriage of the Lamb.

Sunday, July 16, 2017

But good Blessed Virgin, it seems to me that I am more fortunate than you, for I have you for Mother and you have no Blessed Virgin to love. Jesus on the Cross gave you to us for our Mother, so we are richer than you, since we possess Jesus and you are ours as well.

***

O Immaculate Virgin, O tenderest Mother!....you rejoiced that Jesus gave us His life and the infinite treasures of His divinity. How can we not love you and bless you, O Mary, for such great generosity. You love us as Jesus loves us, an for our sake you are willing to live far from Him. To love means to give all, to give one's self, and you wanted to prove that by remaining our support. The Saviour knew well the secrets of your Mother's heart, the immensity of your tenderness....Jesus left us to you, O Refuge of Sinners, when he left the cross to wait for us in heaven.O Mary, I see you on Calvary's height, standing near the cross like a priest at the altar, offering the sweet Emmanuel, you dear Jesus, to appease the Father's justice. O desolate Mother, a prophet said of you: "There is no sorrow like to your sorrow." O Queen of martyrs, standing there bereft, you pour out all your heart's blood for us.

O faithful Virgin, when you uttered your 'fiat', the greatest of all mysteries was accomplished in you. In what peace and recollection did you live and act! Teach me to sanctify my most trivial actions and to spend myself for others when charity requires it, yet all the while to remain like you the constant adorer of God within me.

***

O Virgin most faithful, you remain night and day in profound silence, in ineffable peace, in a divine prayer that never ceases, your soul ever inundated with heavenly light. Your heart is like a crystal that reflects the divine One, the Guest who dwells in you, the Beauty that knows no setting. O Mary, you draw heaven down to you: see the Father commits His Son to you that you may be His mother, and the Spirit of love overshadows you. The Blessed Three come to you, and all heaven is opened and abases itself before you, O Virgin Mary.Mother of the Word, show me your mystery after the Incarnation of the Lord; how you lived buried in adoration....Keep me ever in a divine embrace. Let me carry upon me the stamp of this God of love.

***

O Mary, you are the one created being who knew the gift of God, and lost no particle of it; a creature so pure and luminous that you seemed to be the light itself. "Mirror of justice": your life was so simple, so lost in God, that there is but little to say of it; "faithful virgin": who kept all these things...in your heart." You were so lowly, so hidden in God in the seclusion of the temple that you drew upon yourself the complacent regard of the Holy Trinity. "For he has regarded the low estate of his handmaid, for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed."The Father, bending down to you, a creature so lovely, so unaware of your own beauty, chose you for the Mother in time of him whose Father is in eternity. Then the Spirit of love, who presides over all the works of God, overshadowed you, and, O Virgin, you uttered your 'Fiat': Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to your word," and the greatest of all mysteries was accomplished. By the descent of the Word into your womb, you became God's own for ever and ever.

Thursday, June 15, 2017

Lord, you have given your people the food
of angels, from heaven untiringly sending them bread already prepared,
containing every delight, satisfying every taste.(Wisdom 16:20)

This is what I received from the Lord,
and in turn passed on to you: that on the same night that he was betrayed, the
Lord Jesus took some bread, and thanked God for it and broke it, and he said,
‘This is my body, which is for you; do this as a memorial of me.’ In the same
way he took the cup after supper, and said, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my
blood. Whenever you drink it, do this as a memorial of me.’ (1 Cor 11:23-25)

Bl Titus Brandsma:

In speaking of Carmelites' tender devotion to the Sacrament of the Altar...They have always seen a symbol of the sacred host in the wonderful food which the angels pointed out to Elijah and which strengthened the prophet in finding the way that he was able to cross the desert. The Eucharist is the power which permits them to arrive at contemplation...St Peter Thomas who died in 1365 was prior general at the time of the Avignon popes....He was not hindered by the many occupations of his busy life from spending several hours each night before the Blessed Sacrament, oftentimes he was found lost in adoration...Blessed John Soreth...a great reformer of the Carmelites in fifteenth century, his life imperiled, grasped the Blessed Sacrament from a burning church...Bl Bartholomew Fanti, who counted Bl Baptist Spignola among his disciples, taught his novices that it was not possible to be a good Carmelite without special devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. What determined St Mary Magdalene de Pazzi to enter the Carmel of Florence was the practice of daily Communion observed in this convent - a thing rare for the times. The Carmelites are rightly numbered among the mendicant orders, for their constitutions demand the greatest simplicity in their monasteries. BUT for their churches and the cult of the Eucharist, grandeur was always permitted. (from the teaching on the Blessed Sacrament given during retreat)

St Mary Magdalen de Pazzi:

1. When you are to receive Communion, think that you are about to perform the greatest and most worthy action that can be done, which is to receive the Lord God within yourself.

2.Guard against going to Communion through habit or by chance, but go with actual devotion.

3 If you realize that as long as the sacramental species continue, you have within yourself the entire Most Holy Trinity, you would not go to Communion only occasionally; you would also think about it before you left off Communion, in order not to be deprived of so great a good.

4. Take care lest, on account of your little desire and disposition, you may be the cause of closing that little window of heaven.

5. One cannot find a more effective means of perfecting a soul than to approach this divine table; and if you knew how to use this well, in a short time you would become filled with the love of God, for only one Communion is enough to make a soul holy.

6. Never of your own will deprive yourself of Communion, because you do not know if that Communion might be the very time when God has determined to give you some grace and particular gift. (Teaching on the Most Holy Communion in Complete Works of St Mary Magdalen de Pazzi)

St Teresa of Avila:

Receiving Communion is not like picturing with the imagination. as when we reflect upon the Lord on the cross or in other episodes of the Passion, when we picture within ourselves how things happened to him in the past. In Communion, the event is happening now, and it is entirely true. Since we know that Jesus is with us as long as the natural heat doesn't consume the accidents of bread, we should approach him. Now, then, if when he went about in the world the mere touch of his robes cured the sick, why doubt, if we have faith, that miracles will be worked while He is within us and that he will give what we ask of him since he is in our house? His Majesty is not accustomed to paying poorly for his lodging if the hospitality is good. (The Way of Perfection)

Augustin-Marie of the Blessed Sacrament, OCD (Hermann Cohen):

My well-Beloved when all are asleep

And seem to forget your love

Do permit me to watch

Alone with you in this abode

(Canticle from his music collection 'Love of Jesus Christ')

Blessed Mary of Jesus Cricified:

...To fly to my Beloved

Hail, hail, blessed tree;

Thou bearest the fruit of life

Under Thy shade, I wish to sigh;

At thy feet, I wish to die.

(Mariam, the Little Arab)

St Therese of Child Jesus:

Living Bread, Bread of Heaven, Divine Eucharist,

O touching mystery produced by Love,

Come dwell within my heart, Jesus, my white Host...

Deign to unite me unto Thee, O holy and sacred Vine,

That my feeble branch may yield its fruit to Thee;

And I will offer Thee a gilded cluster...

This cluster of love of which the grapes are souls.

(Poems)

Bl Elizabeth of the Trinity:

Every Sunday, we have the Blessed Sacrament exposed in the oratory. When I open the door and contemplate the divine prisoner who has made ma a prisoner in this dear Carmel, it seems to me rather like the gate of heaven opening! Then I present to Jesus all those who are in my heart, and there, close to him, I find them again. (Light, Love, Life)

St Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein):

Communion delivers us from evil, because it cleanses us of sin and gives us peace of heart that takes away things of all other 'evils'. It brings us the forgiveness of past sins and strengthens us in the face of temptations. It is itself the bread of life that we need daily to grow into eternal life. It makes our will into an instrument at God's disposal. Thereby, it lays the foundation for the kingdom of God in us and gives us clean lips and a pure heart to glorify God's holy name. participation in the sacrifice and in the sacrificial meal actually transforms the soul into a living stone in the city of God - in fact, each individual soul - into a temple of God. (Essential Writings)

Servant of God, Pere Jacques de Jesus Bunel:

Our participation at Mass, our grace filled actions, our Communions must be religious acts stamped with prayer and love. Our material work of the day must be a work bathed in prayer. (Resplendent in Victory).

St Teresa of Jesus of the Andes:

Thank God, we have always had Mass and we've had the Blessed Sacrament. Since Eli, Gorda, and I are the sacristans, we've spent moments of heaven by our Lord's side. (Letters).

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

St John of the Cross says: "to hide itself in the breast of its Beloved, for to these clefts He invites it in the Canticle of Canticles saying: 'Arise, and make haste, my love, my fair one, and come into the clefts of the rock, and into the cavern of the enclosure" (Spiritual Canticle 31:5). And St Teresa Margaret of the Heart of Jesus wrote in her resolutions: My God, I wish to enclose myself in Your most loving Heart as in a desert, to live there in You, with You, and for You, a hidden life of love and sacrifice" (Spirituality Of St Teresa Margaret)

Friday, May 26, 2017

And when the days of the Pentecost were accomplished, they were all together in one place: And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty wind coming, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them parted tongues as it were of fire, and it sat upon every one of them: And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they began to speak with divers tongues, according as the Holy Ghost gave them to speak.Acts 2:1-4.The grace of the Holy Spirit be with your paternity, mi padre. I hope that this Pentecost has brought you so many of his gifts and blessings that through them you may render His Majesty the service you owe him for having willed to come to the aid of his people, at so great a cost to yourself. May he be praised for everything.(On the vigil of the Pentecost Sunday, 7 June 1579, while praying in the hermitage of Nazareth, St Teresa received the four counsels for the discalced friars). From the letter 297 of St Teresa to Fr Jeronimo Gracian, written in Avila, 10th of June 1579.

Thursday, May 25, 2017

The Lord gives us so much to do these days that we can
hardly keep up with it all. The foundation for the friars in Cordoba was
completed with greater applause and solemnity throughout the entire city than
was ever given there to any other religious order. All the clergy and
confraternities of Cordoba gathered, and the Most Blessed Sacrament was brought
with great solemnity from the Cathedral. All streets were beautifully
decorated, and the people acted as though it were the feast of Corpus Christi.
This took place on the Sunday after Ascension Thursday. The Bishop came and
preached, praising us highly. The house is situated in the best district of the
city in the neighbourhood of the Cathedral.

Friday, March 10, 2017

Friday, February 10, 2017

"Man's merits are not to be estimated by his having many visions or consolations, nor by his knowledge of Scriptures, nor by his being placed in a more elevated station; but by his being grounded in true humility, and replenished with divine charity". (Imitation of Christ Bk 3)

THE INFANT JESUS OF PRAGUE

Patron of this blog - click for link to Our Lady Victorious church images of the statue

Liturgical Year

February, the Month dedicated to the Holy Family, click the image for link

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ABOUT CARMELITES

This is the Carmelite shield of the Ancient Observance. The palm and the lily signifies the first saints of the order: St. Angelus of Sicily (signified by the palm of martyrdom) and St. Albert of Trapani (signified by the lily). Six pieces of spiritual armour are described in the rule of the Order; the cincture is the symbol of purity, indispensable for one who desires to reach the holy mountain of the vision of God: "Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God". The corselet which protects the vital parts of the body represents good thoughts: "Holy thoughts will protect you". The breastplate which covers the whole body represents justice, a well regulated life, the observance of the commandments and duties of daily life. The shield is faith; for a living faith is the best safeguard for the spiritual life. The helmet symbolizes hope, confidence in God, which gives us the right to walk with freedom and confidence. Finally, the sword indicates conversation with God which as a double edge blade comes to our aid and defends us in all our difficulties.

Carmelites are one of four mendicant religious Orders, originally founded in ancient Palestine with spirituality drawn from the imitation of the holy Prophet Elijah and zealous veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Order is dedicated to Our Lady, she is particularly honoured and venerated by Carmelites and the life of Carmelite should be focused on imitation of Mary. Devotion of the Brown Scapular, Mary's habit, caused Carmelites to be known as "Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel", to which Popes and Bishops attached indulgences. The oldest preserved constitution of the Order, established during General Chapter of Barcelona (1324), tells us that from the times of the holy Prophets, Elijah and Elisha, devout hermits lived continuously on Mt. Carmel, sought this holy mountain and loved its solitude in order to give their minds over to the contemplation of heavenly things; they built a chapel there in honor of the Virgin and thus deserved to be called the Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, a name recognized by Popes. St. Albert gave them a rule which was approved and the Carmelites, as we know them today, are successors of these holy hermits. Therefore, from its origin, their spirituality has been founded on these two specific elements, an imitation of the holy Prophet Elijah and veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary (from Bl Titus Brandsma - "Lectures on Carmelite Spirituality" - Carmelnet).

Carmel in Toledo - Under Our Lady's mantle - St Elijah in Carmelite habit in company of other prophets (lower left panel). Picture credit: Karmel im Heiligen Land

Therefore, since the beginning of this blog established to promote Carmelite spirituality, special care has been taken to dedicate meditations of Saturday - day of Our Lady in Church's tradition - in honour and veneration of the Blessed Virgin, the ever glorious Patroness of all Carmelites.

ST ELIJAH AND CARMELITE SPIRITUALITY

1Kings 17:4 - Elijah by the brook of Cherith

In The Book of the First Monks, a medieval Carmelite work on the spirit of the order, the following teaching stands out: "The goal of this life is twofold. One part we acquire, with the help of divine grace, through our efforts and virtuous works. This is to offer God a pure heart, free from all stain of actual sin. We do this when we are perfect and in Cherith, that is, hidden in that charity of which we read:"Charity covers all sins " (Prov. 10:12). God desired Elijah to advance thus far when he said to him: "Hide yourself by the brook Cherith " (1 Kings 17:3-4).The other part of the goal of this life is granted us as the free gift of God: namely, to taste somewhat in the heart and to experience in the soul, not only after death but even in this mortal life, the intensity of the divine presence and the sweetness of the glory of heaven. This is to drink of the torrent of the love of God. God promised it to Elijah in the words: "You shall drink from the brook. "It is in view of this double end that the monk ought to give himself to the eremitic and prophetic life" (after Carmelites.com).

Prophet Elijah testimony: "I have burned with zeal for the Lord God of hosts" (1 Kings 19:9) - has become spiritual motto of Carmelites

The greatest achievement of Elijah's life was his victory over the priests of Baal at Mt. Carmel. Having heard that the other prophets of Yahwh were also persecuted, he requested King Ahab to gather the people of Israel, the 450 priests of Baal, and the 400 prophets of Ashtaroth on Mt. Carmel. Then he asked Israel the famous question of 1 Kings 18:21: "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him", meaning, "How long will ye be undecided as to whether ye shall follow Yahwh or Baal?"The people remaining silent. He invited the priests of Baal to a contest, proposing that he and they should each build an altar and lay a burnt offering thereon, and that the God who should send down fire from heaven to consume the offering should be accepted as the true God. After various unsuccessful attempts to get a favorable answer had been made by the prophets of Baal, while they were ridiculed with subtle irony by Elijah, Elijah prayed, and Yahwh sent fire from heaven to consume his offering. Yahwh was recognized by Israel, and the priests of Baal were slain by the people near the brook Kishon (1 Kings 18:17-40).

TWO CARMELITE ORDERS - TWO BRANCHES OF THE SAME TRUNK

Looking at Carmel from above, its two branches are united at their summits. Despite the separation which exists on the trunk, the two branches intermingle their foliage and blossoms without our being able to distinguish those which belong to the one from those which belong to the other. The blind singer of Rennes, Ven. John of St. Samson, does not have a different melody from that of the inspired singer imprisoned in the Carmel of Toledo, because both repeat what the Institutio primorum monachorum had inculcated in the Carmelites of the first centuries, namely, that all Carmelites, Brothers and Sisters of the Order of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, in order to be faithful to their vocation should do their very utmost to go, under the guidance of the saintly hermit and prophet Elijah, across the desert of this life up to the Mt. Horeb of the vision of God, strengthened by the heavenly nourishment which is shown on the altar. (Bl Titus Brandsma, Lectures)

About Me

'Jay' stands for the phonetics of my first name initial 'J', as I have chosen anonymity in blogging. I am 'cradle' Roman Catholic, happy wife, mother and grandmother. I am professed Discalced Carmelite tertiary now, who loves and respects Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Holy Tradition of the RC Church - "Therefore, brethren, stand fast; and hold the traditions which you have learned, whether by word, or by our epistle" (2Thes 2:14), and: "Even if Catholics faithful to Tradition are reduced to a handful, they are the ones who are the true Church of Jesus Christ” (St. Athanasius, AD 373). In my devotion to Church's Tradition and Tridentine Mass I am with the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales and in union with the Holy Roman Catholic Church. In conclusion, the aim of this blog is to present and propagate traditional Catholic devotions, piety and Carmelite Spirituality in the richness of Tradition. All my efforts are aimed to help to preserve Catholic identity. The idea of this project is entirely private and comes from my own convictions and understanding of Catholicism.

The life of St Mary Magdalene de Pazzi

Traditional Rite Discalced Carmelite Nuns in Valparaido, Nebraska

Hermits of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel

Christoval, Texas

TRADITIONAL RITE CARMELITE MONKS OF WYOMING

Click on the picture for website link

TRADITIONAL RITE THIRD ORDER CARMELITES

Traditional Latin Rite Third Order of Carmelites of Ancient Observance from Campos, Brasil was originally established on 13 May 1752. Their spiritual director is Rev. Father Everaldo Bon Robert, who is also O. Carm Tertiary. The Order numbers 150 members, among them 15 priests, 3 religious brothers of “conventual life” plus some associated Regular Third Order Sisters. The Order is under jurisdiction of the Personal Apostolic Administration of St. John Mary Vianney, which was created by the Holy See in 2002 for the Traditional Catholics of the Latin Rite in Brazil under administration of the Bishop Fernando Areas Rifan. In their church, the Traditional Latin Mass is the only Mass celebrated and every member of the Order pray Saturday's Rosary fervently in honour of the Queen and Mother of Carmel to keep them always in such a special grace. Third Order meetings take place on every 2nd Sunday of the month, and all Tertiaries, brothers and sisters, wear full Carmelite habit (as featured in the picture above).Church of Our Lady of Mt Carmel in Campos - blog and newsFlos Carmeli Vitis Florigera blog of the OrderShort history of the Society of St John Vianney in Campos, Brazil

CATHOLIC FAITH, DEVOTIONS AND TEACHING

ADORATION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT DEVOTION

DEVOTION TO THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS

Tridentine Mass on video

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DEVOTION TO THE MOST HOLY ROSARY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Why we should meditate on Our Lady's titles and invocations of Loreto Litany

This litany to the Blessed Virgin Mary was composed during the Middle Ages. The place of honor it now holds in the life of the Church is due to its faithful use at the shrine of the Holy House at Loreto. It was definitely approved by Sixtus V in 1587, and all other Marian litanies were suppressed, at least for public use. Its titles and invocations set before us Mary's exalted privileges, her holiness of life, her amiability and power, her motherly spirit and queenly majesty. The principle that has been followed in their interpretation is the one enunciated by the same Pius IX: "God enriched her so wonderfully from the treasury of His divinity, far beyond all angels and saints with the abundance of all heavenly gifts, that she . . .should show forth such fullness of innocence and holiness, than which a greater under God is unthinkable and which, beside God, no one can even conceive in thought." Hence, whatever virtue and holiness is found in angels and saints must be present in Mary in an immeasurably higher degree.

Reflection on the titles of the litany will unfold before us the grand picture of our heavenly Mother, even though we know only little about her life. We will also come to see why Mary's example, guidance, and help is the need of the hour (from Intermirifica, Litany of Loreto).

DEVOTION TO THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST

Stations of the Cross - click on the image to enter - it works now!

All the Saints achieved sanctity by meditating upon the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ. By this devotion, we have an irresistible and proven method to advance in our love for Our Divine Master as well as overcoming all our personal faults. The Passion of Jesus is also a treasure-house whose wealth will never suffer devaluation and obtains for us from the Eternal Father, Who cannot resists this devotion, all of those graces essential for our salvation as well as to that of others. This is the reason for which the Crucifix occupies a place of Honour upon our Altars, our Churches, our tombstones, in Christian bedrooms, as well as in the households of Christian families."One thing only I do know", says St Paul,"and that is Jesus and Jesus Crucified" (1 Cor 2:2).And St Augustine:"I know of no remedy more effective against the sins of the flesh (i.e. concupiscence) than the Passion of my Lord Jesus Christ".Saint Bonaventure: "The Passion of Jesus dissolves in Divine Love even the most callous hearts of obstinate sinners".Saint Albert the Great:"One gains more merits by meditating lovingly on the Passion than by scourging oneself most severely or by fasting on bread and water every day of one's life".Always keep in mind the devotion of (King) Saint Louis to the Relics of the Passion. Saint Teresa of Avila began her spiritual ascent to high sanctity following a vision of Jesus after His Scourging and a glimpse of the "Ecce Homo"...behold also Saint Therese of The Child Jesus contemplating the Holy Face.Second only to the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the merits of which are applied to our souls and which truly renews before us, albeit in an unbloody manner, the Infinite Sacrifice of the Lamb of God on Calvary, the Holy Hour of Reparation and the Way of the Cross consitute the most effective practices regarding the Devotion of the Most Holy Passion of Jesus.

The Way of the Cross Final Prayer - St Alphonsus Liquori

O God who for the world's redemption was pleased to be born, circumcised, rejected by the Jews, betrayed by the kiss of Judas, bound with chains, led like an innocent lamb to sacrifice, and shamefully presented before Annas, Caiphas, Pilate, and Herod, accused by false witnesses, beaten with whips, buffeted, insulted, spat upon, crowned with thorns, smitten with a reed, blindfolded, stripped of thy garments, fastened with nail to the cross and lifted high, reputed among thieves and made to drink vinegar, and wounded with a lance; O by these most sacred sufferings which unworthy as I am, I thus commemorate, and by Thy Holy Cross and death deliver me Lord from the pains of hell and deign to lead me where thou didst lead the penitent thief who was crucified by thy side; Thou, Who, with the Father and the Holy Ghost livest and reignest world without end. Amen

THE THREE GREAT HAIL MARY'S DEVOTION

"While St. Mechtilde was beseeching the glorious Virgin to assist her in her hour of death, Our Lady appeared to her and said: 'I will certainly. But I also want you to say three special Hail Mary's to me every day.

"'The first will be in honor of God the Father, Whose omnipotence raised my soul so high above every other creature that after God I have the greatest power in heaven and on earth. In the hour of your death I will use that power of God the Father to keep any hostile power far from you.

"''The second Hail Mary will be said in honor of the Son of God Who communicated His inscrutable wisdom to me. In the hour of your death I will fill your soul with the light of that wisdom so that all the darkness of ignorance and error will be dispelled.

"'The third Hail Mary will be in honor of God the Holy Spirit Who filled my soul with the sweetness of His love and tenderness and mercy. In your last hour I will then change the bitterness of death into divine sweetness and delight.' "